Heckingbottom on international break, Davies and McAtee
- Published
Joe Bradshaw, BBC Sport
Paul Heckingbottom has been speaking to the media before Sheffield United's game at Tottenham on Saturday.
Here are the key lines from his news conference:
Heckingbottom says they have "done a good bit of work" during the international break but that some players "have picked up some injuries while they have been away".
He does not think the two weeks has overly benefitted his team: "We would have done a lot more for the Spurs game with everyone together. It is always a struggle during the break. We could have done with a few more of the boys being here."
Despite that, there have been some positives: "We have been able to individualise for each player. Some have had game time, some have done extra fitness work, others had a bit of down time."
His drive is to keep improving the players: "The atmosphere has been up and down since we came back but we are gradually improving and improving. We are going to try really hard to make sure results do not affect the atmosphere."
Summer signing Tom Davies is close to making his debut: "He is getting fitter and fitter. The two weeks has been good for him and now he just needs game time to get match fit."
On-loan midfielder James McAtee is ready to pick up from last season: "He is raring to go - he has just not had much football. We did a lot of work with him last season and he has come back where he left off so we're not starting again."
On McAtee, the manager added: "He’s excited to be here. There’s going to be a lot of expectation on him and it’s going to be difficult for him to deal with that. He’s still behind, he’s got a hell of a lot of catching up to do but he’s come in the building and we’ve done a lot of work with him. He is a big talent and I think his ceiling is really high."
Finally, he wants to "play with no fear" at Spurs: "To get a result, we will have to perform really well and have a go. They will be favourites but I believe in this group, that we can go there and win."